It’s an exercise in futility to discard trade show materials time and again. When it comes to the trade show marketing materials, or the booth itself, there are ways to stretch your trade show budget and make every last dollar and moment of your precious time go the extra mile. And while there is the option to rent a trade show display, there is also a huge advantage to purchasing a trade show booth with repurposing in mind. To repurpose your trade show booth materials consider these trade show budget saving strategies. Opt for Flexible Materials While it may seem counter-intuitive initially, a primary reason to invest in purchasing your own trade show booth is to maximize flexibility. If you aren’t renting, and your current booth is not flexible enough to work brilliantly in every likely booth-space configuration out there, an upgrade to the right trade show booth is the most effective investment you can make. Not every trade show floor layout is the same. Select a design that can be transformed to easily fit into large or small spaces, or even grace an awkward-fitting corner. Make sure the construction is both durable and able to be revitalized for different shows. Strategically Brand Your Booth When you choose to brand your booth with your organization’s message or logo, you’re ready for any trade show during any season. If you’re tempted to mark your booth with dates, places, specials, or seasons, stop! Instead, consider putting the customization onto a one-time banner or flag. Transform Your Display with High Impact Touches As with your trade show display, all of your trade show booth marketing materials benefit from avoiding dates, cities, and trade show names. A few pieces are all you need for any given show. Place a sticker or insert on your brochure rack instead of imprinting paper marketing materials with the local specifics, for example. Use Games & Giveaways to Grab Attention When you make that jump from renting to purchasing, consider planning for games that can be transformed into several different types of trade shows. You can also put the games on a screen for maximum booth flexibility. Prizes are optional but can add excitement and can encourage audience participation. If you want to include any trade show giveaways, check your budget and make sure it’s valuable and relevant to your trade show event attendees. Choose Your Promotional Material Wisely As for the booth materials themselves, the same goes for promotional material. Opt for general promotional “swag” to hand...

Building attractive trade show displays isn’t just about flashy graphics or engaging staff. To truly maximize your trade show marketing strategy, consider including some trade show giveaways for visitors to walk away with. These tactics are great for engaging with potential customers and leaving them with something to remember your company by, and when they are ready to purchase, be top of mind. Trade show marketing can also be a great tactic for startups to create brand awareness and get their name out there and to generate quality leads. Below, we’ll cover some of our favorite ideas for display marketing gifts that will generate great brand awareness. Bottle Openers Or as an alternative, any handy tool relevant to your target industry. What kind of gear would your targeted customer find useful? A bottle opener, for example, is a fantastic trade show gift for industries involving entertainment, drinks, or any occasion where suds might be on hand. USB Chargers Car chargers, for example, are a fantastic event marketing option for the constantly on-the-go customer. For frequent travelers, one can never have enough chargers, so you can count on this giveaway being put to use right away. Pocket Flashlights Great for craftsmen or outdoor-types, a pocket flashlight can be a lifesaver in a pinch, and fits perfectly in any glove box, keyring, or kit bag, making it a fantastic business gift. First Aid Kits Whether a medical professional or tradesperson, it is rare to find an occupation that couldn’t benefit from a first aid kit on-hand. Even better, these are a perfect candidate for large custom logos or contact information. Business Card Magnet Magnets are useful as they are cheap, and a solid trade show giveaway to help make sure your business card ends up somewhere visible, be it on an office desk or break room fridge. Hand Sanitizer How many trade shows have you been to where you wished you had some sanitizer on-hand? Especially during the cold season where there are likely to be many coughs and sneezes around, hand sanitizer is a terrific custom giveaway (and a great way to spare your visitor an unfortunate case of the flu). While these are some of our favorite ideas for trade show exhibit marketing, the possibilities are endless for stocking your booth with memorable and useful handouts for visitors. Remember, by keeping giveaways relevant to your business potential customers will find use and value, and for you, it will generate brand awareness that has the potential to turn a booth...

You know the benefits of exhibiting at a trade show as it’s a great way to get the word out about your business, meet new clients, and connect with your customers face-to-face. Knowing a few key pointers when it comes to navigating the logistics and transportation of your trade show exhibit is a great way to ensure that you’ll have the best possible experience, reaching as many customers as you can. Tip 1: Combine Shipments and Ship Early to the Warehouse Consolidating your shipments is a lifesaver for a few reasons: You will minimize unnecessary drayage costs Your trade show materials will be packaged together Easier setup and takedown In addition to combining your shipments into as few as possible, shipping to the advanced warehouse lets you rest easy knowing that your exhibit will be in your booth space ready for you on day one. While yes, you can ship directly to the trade show site, if you encounter any issues transporting your materials to the booth space or it’s misplaced, you’ve wasted valuable time and energy. Make sure you gather all shipping confirmations and paperwork before you head out for the show. Tip 2: Label and Document Each Container Save yourself the headache of looking through your materials in a rush. Clearly label each of your containers, and document the contents, to stay organized. Just like looking for a black suitcase in a sea of them, labeling your trade show materials containers saves you from wasting time and energy searching for your items. Make sure that you secure items any time you’re going to be away from your booth, including at the end of the day, and keep small items secured throughout the event. Tip 3: Shape Up Your Shipping Budget Trade show display shipping isn’t just one line on your budget. Make sure you’re considering the cost of shipping the trade show display, as well as drayage – the cost of transporting your display and materials from the warehouse to the show floor. Tip 4: Prepping Your Trade Show Display for the Show You need a booth that will stand out in a good way. Whether you’re looking to buy a trade show display to take to every trade show you attend over the next few years, or you’d like to rent a booth that will fit your needs for a specific show, make sure you work with a company that will help meet your needs. Carefully think through transportation logistics of that booth. Will it...

Whether you’re planning your first, or your fiftieth, trade show, there’s no substitute for experience. You want to get the most out of the trade show, whether it’s leads or sales, and you’re budgeting time and resources wisely. One of the best sources of information, for the new or experienced trade show exhibitor, are those that organize that particular show. For every show there are those who are dedicated to hosting a successful show, the trade show organizers, and they’re the experts. Before your next trade show contact the trade show organizer with a few of these key questions. Question 1: What are the trade show attendees expecting? Asking what the trade show attendees will be expecting from the show can help you decide whether what you’re offering aligns with their needs or not. The organizer may be able to provide the number of people expected to attend the event, what type of people are coming, are they the decision makers, and some general demographic information about the expected attendees. Ask if you can see last year’s attendee list or get a head count from the show. Question 2: What’s around the space where my booth will be located? Many trade shows offer the opportunity for you to choose where your booth is placed. There are several advantages to this. For example, you may want to choose a specific location away from exits, or you may be more interested in placing your booth beside a specific type of business’ booth. Take the time to look over the open spaces and choose a space that will be a good fit for what you’re presenting at your trade show booth. Question 3: What’s the cost? When you’re preparing your trade show budget, include the cost of the exhibition space. Plan for the added cost of making the booth space attendee and staff-friendly with carpet, trash cans, stools, and wifi, to name a few. Make sure you’re asking questions like: Am I able to get a discount if I register early? What’s the anticipated return on my investment (ROI) for this show? What kinds of discounts do you offer exhibitors (workshops, shipping, etc.)? What marketing is being done to promote the show? Question 4: How is the event being promoted? A great trade show event should have several promotion methods that will help raise awareness about the event and bring in more visitors for your booth. The organizer will know what kind of promotions materials have been distributed, whether it’s by email to...

The following is a story, albeit a fictional one, about a trade show event planner’s experience with disaster. Chances are very high that you’ve experienced something similar when planning or executing a trade show. Read on for the nitty gritty nail-biting action, and then what you can do to avoid ending up like our disaster-stricken trade show event planner. On Top of the World I had arrived at the venue ready to go, my outfit was sharp as a tack, the primary video came out spectacularly and under budget, which meant more promo swag for the trade show booth staff to pass out, and the trade show display design was innovative and truly immersive; it was hard for me to look away and I knew the specs and capabilities and all of the great applications at this point. On top of all of that, the product was really great. You would own one yourself… if disaster hadn’t struck shortly after that. I was confident, this being my second show and my first having been a solid success all around, that the bases were soundly covered. So when I walked into the convention center and couldn’t find my trade show exhibit I was just plain flummoxed. I couldn’t find my staff either. Sure they were local hires but they were from a staffing agency with a good reputation. Now, granted I was a little early but no exhibit OR staff had me more than a little concerned. I found my exhibit first, so far from the entrance, it might as well not have been at the show at all. This particular show catered to the customer, my target audience, as well as industry pro’s who were logically at the rear of the venue, where my bosses could find them, and now me too it seemed. To make matters worse my innovative trade show display was only one-third erected and already out of space and at least half of the components were missing entirely. I found my staffers down a hall and in a room outside of the public access area of the convention center waiting patiently by boxes of my exciting swag, not yet unboxed or sorted into the individual bags my staff would be passing around to interested parties. Soon after, in a panic, I found my point of contact for the event and began making demands until they patiently covered, point by point, why everything had happened and how it was my fault, and point by point to...

It’s no secret that the best trade show, clocking in at over 170k visitors and millions of exhibition space, is the Consumer Electronic Show (CES). From there, there are literally hundreds of other trade shows, expos, and fairs for your business to see and be seen. If you’re a trade show booth exhibitor you’re ready and eager to promote your products or services and maybe you’re not quite sure which events to attend. Don’t put the cart before the proverbial horse; first plan on what trade show or shows are the best fit for your business and where your ideal prospective buyers will be. If your business offers complete home care services, even the CES won’t be the best trade show bet for your time, money and effort. Consider which events would garner the best bang for your buck, the best exposure, and ideally – customers. Here are some extra tips on determining a trade show’s benefit. If this sounds like you, you’re in the right place! We’ve come up with a list of top trade shows across Phoenix and North America. First, here are the 5 Top Trade Shows in Phoenix Phoenix Small Business Expo The Phoenix Small Business Expo is a large business-to-business trade show, conference, and networking event that promotes the entrepreneurial spirit. The expo is free to all attendees, and the industries that exhibit cover almost all areas of business. From tax planning, to eCommerce, this expo is the optimal place for business owners to learn and grow their business. Creativation Connect with new buyers, suppliers, designers, makers, bloggers, media representatives, and entrepreneurs from around the world at Creativation. This trade show fills the needs of the creative communities across the globe! Do you sell high-quality craft supplies that you want to get into the hands of vendors? Come to this fun and creative convention to network and grow your business. AZ Brew Con This convention is a one-day trade show for those in the craft beer community who are looking to make connections and open doors. If you’re in the business of brews, this is the trade show for you. Making beer can be a difficult process, and making good beer can be even more challenging; experienced veterans attend this event to answer your questions in a variety of panels. For those in the craft beer community, this is the event for your trade show booth. Indoor Custom Car Super Show & Concert Is your business focused on custom cars? If so, this trade...